Dana Santas, aka “”mobility manufacturer” is a certified strength and conditioning specialist in professional sports, a mind-body coach, and author of the book Practical Solutions to Reduce Lower Back Pain.
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It is quite normal for one side of the body to be a little stronger and more in tune than the other. If you're right-handed and have ever tried to brush your teeth with your left hand, you'll know what I mean. No matter how symmetrical your body looks, unless you are in his 1% of the population. ambidextrous —You have a naturally dominant side.
Problems begin to arise when the scales tip beyond their natural bias and the dominant side begins to carry an undue burden. That's when you begin to experience pain, weakness, and possible overuse injuries. Muscles also work in chains, so problems related to imbalances can have a chain reaction that affects other parts of the body.
That's bad news. The good news is that with a little awareness and equalization practice, you can correct imbalances and embrace your natural asymmetries in a healthy and pain-free way.
Having a physically demanding career is probably the most common way natural side dominance causes problems. As a mobility and mind-body coach in professional sports, I see this all the time. For example, consider the demands placed on the dominant arm of a Major League Baseball pitcher. All too often, overuse tears the ulnar collateral ligament in the elbow, requiring surgery to repair it.
You don't have to be a professional athlete to take on the physical responsibilities of exacerbating your side advantage. Think of cashiers repeatedly scanning items with the same hand, or stay-at-home parents carrying their babies around on one hip all day long. People who regularly engage in activities that require repetitive movements or strength that rely on their dominant side may experience chronic pain and increase their chances of injury if unaddressed.
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If parents hold their baby on one hip all day long, side-lying problems can be exacerbated, causing chronic pain and increasing the chance of injury.
Another common cause of inadvertently reinforcing temporal dominance is not properly rehabilitating after an injury. If you slip and twist your non-dominant ankle, you will need to rely more on your dominant side to move. Without balanced rehabilitation, you will likely continue to prioritize your dominant foot even after your ankle has healed.
Awareness is a key element in restoring more balanced movement patterns. By being aware of how you bias yourself throughout the day, you can make simple changes to prevent overspending. If you wear your bag on your shoulder, change its orientation regularly. When standing for long periods of time, notice whether your weight is shifting to one hip and leg, and if so, shift your position. Even if you sit on the same side of the couch every night, you may need to change your position from time to time, as this can increase your over-reliance on your dominant side.
nevertheless walk This is a symmetrical activity. Be careful during your next walk, ensure balance in your gait, and try to correct side-to-side balance. If you feel like it might be biased to one side, check your shoes for uneven wear that could be an indicator of an imbalance.
Because we are naturally stronger and more coordinated on one side, there are some lateral activities that cannot be easily changed, such as swinging a golf club, throwing a ball, or putting pen to paper. If you have responsibilities in your job or lifestyle that require you to use one side repeatedly, it's important to follow a regular fitness regimen that incorporates exercises to restore balance. Much of my coaching work with professional athletes focuses on exactly that.
Important Note: Consult your doctor before starting any new exercise program. Stop immediately if you feel pain.
It may sound counterintuitive, but unilateral training, which focuses on one side of your body at a time, is the most effective way to promote symmetry in your movements. By performing single-leg or single-arm exercises on one side, you can evenly distribute the same amount of effort on both sides. This approach not only corrects existing imbalances but also helps prevent them from developing. By focusing on each side individually, you can ensure proper firing patterns in your muscles, strengthen coordination, and build a stable foundation for symmetrical strength.
When it comes to unilateral strength training, dumbbells are the perfect equalizing tool, requiring you to match your efforts on both sides. Unlike barbells and machines, where your dominant side can compensate, dumbbells require each limb to carry the load independently. This means promoting balance and uncovering and addressing conflicts of strength.
Even better, all you need is You can do your entire workout with one dumbbell Incorporates unilateral strength training. Examples of unilateral strength training exercises that can be seamlessly incorporated into your fitness routine include lunges (forward lunge, backward lunge, lateral lunge), single-leg Romanian deadlifts, one-arm shoulder presses, and one-arm rows. With these and other strength exercises, it's important to: Please select the appropriate weight Focus on correct form depending on your fitness level.
One of the major differences between unilateral training compared to standard bilateral training is its unique effectiveness as a rehabilitation tool. the study found that unilateral training on one side of the body also stimulates the other side, and that this indirect stimulation actually strengthens the side that is not working. This science-backed phenomenon is called cross-educational training.
Of course, training beyond education plays an important role in rehabilitation protocols for lateral injuries, such as the pitcher's UCL surgery mentioned above. If an injury damages one side, concentrating on the healthy side will prevent the effects of reduced training on the injured limb. The neural adaptations and muscle strength gains achieved on the untrained side make healing more efficient and effective.
As well as playing an important role in recovery from lateral injuries, cross-educational training provides a practical path for non-injured individuals seeking to correct imbalances. There is no need to focus entirely on the weak side. Training Beyond Education helps build balanced strength and stability by practicing unilateral exercises with equal effort.
If you follow this advice, you'll know you're taking active steps to keep the scales balanced to avoid pain and injury, and you can safely embrace the gifts of your dominant side.
